Nigeria’s inflation rate rose to 15.93% in May 2026, marking the third consecutive monthly increase in the annual inflation rate as food prices continued to pressure household budgets despite a slowdown in the pace of monthly price increases.
The latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday showed that inflation increased from 15.69% in April to 15.93% in May, extending a rebound that began in March after inflation fell slightly to 15.06% in February.
The report showed that the CPI increased to 140.7 in May from 138.3 in April, representing a 2.4-point increase in the general price level.
According to the NBS, “In May 2026, the Headline inflation rate on a month-on-month basis was 1.75%, which was 0.39% lower than the rate recorded in April 2026 (2.13%). This means that in May 2026, the rate of increase in the average price level was lower than the rate of increase in the average price level in April 2026”. Although the month-on-month inflation rate moderated, the annual inflation rate continued its upward trend, rising from 15.38% in March to 15.69% in April before reaching 15.93% in May, the report reads.
The latest figure, however, remained substantially below the 26.06% recorded in May 2025, highlighting the significant easing in inflationary pressures compared with a year earlier. The NBS noted that the May inflation rate was 0.24 percentage points higher than the 15.69% recorded in April.
Food prices remained one of the strongest drivers of inflation during the month. According to the Bureau, the increase in food prices was driven by the rising cost of staple items, including onions, maize grains, melon, water yam, cassava flour, crayfish, fresh pepper, tomatoes, wheat grain, cassava tubers, yam tubers, sweet potatoes, ginger, plantain and cowpea. The report also showed persistent inflationary pressures outside food and energy.
In rural areas, inflation stood at 15.60k year-on-year. Monthly rural inflation slowed markedly to 1.17% from 2.80% in April, while the 12-month average rural inflation rate eased to 18.19% from 28.36% recorded in May 2025. At the state level, Yobe state recorded the highest headline inflation rate on a year-on-year basis at 24.94%, followed by Anambra at 23.29% and Sokoto at 22.60%. Niger state recorded the lowest annual inflation rate at 3.07%, followed by Plateau state, at 7.10% and Edo at 7.73%.
The latest figures indicate that while inflation remains considerably lower than the levels recorded a year ago, consumer prices continue to rise, with the annual inflation rate increasing for the third consecutive month amid persistent pressures from food, services and other core components of the economy as global tensions and insecurity persist.
